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Jingle Bells (song)
]] "'Jingle Bells'" is one of the best-known and commonly sung Christmas songs in the world. It was written by James Lord Pierpont) and published under the title '"One Horse Open Sleigh"' in 1857. Despite being widely regarded as a Christmas song, it is said to have been written about Thanksgiving. Composition James Lord Pierpont originally composed his most famous song in 1850. A plaque commemorating the "birthplace" of "Jingle Bells" adorns the side of a building in Medford, Massachusetts. Pierpont wrote the song there, at the former Simpson Tavern, now 19 High Street in the center of Medford Square. According to the Medford Historical Society, the song was inspired by the town's popular sleigh races during the 1800s. The song was originally copyrighted with the name "One Horse Open Sleigh" on September 16, 1857. It was reprinted in 1859 with the revised title of "Jingle Bells, or the One Horse Open Sleigh". Its copyright status has since passed into public domain. Music historian James Fuld notes that "the word jingle in the title and opening phrase is apparently an imperative verb." However, it is commonly taken to mean a certain kind of bell. Lyrics The first verse and chorus are the most well-remembered sections of "Jingle Bells": :Dashing through the snow :In a one-horse open sleigh :O'er the fields we go :Laughing all the way :Bells on bobtails ring :Making spirits bright :What fun it is to laugh and sing :A sleighing song tonight! :Chorus'' :Jingle bells, jingle bells, :Jingle all the way; :Oh! what fun it is to ride :In a one-horse open sleigh. :Jingle bells, jingle bells, :Jingle all the way; :Oh! what fun it is to ride :In a one-horse open sleigh. Although less well-known than the opening, the remaining verses depict high-speed youthful fun. In the second verse, the narrator takes a ride with a girl and loses control of the sleigh: :A day or two ago :I thought I'd take a ride :And soon, Miss Fanny Bright :Was seated by my side, :The horse was lean and lank :Misfortune seemed his lot :He got into a drifted bank :And then we got upsot. :Chorus In the next verse (which is often skipped), he falls out of the sleigh and a rival laughs at him: :A day or two ago, :The story I must tell :I went out on the snow, :And on my back I fell; :A gent was riding by :In a one-horse open sleigh, :He laughed as there I sprawling lie, :But quickly drove away. :Chorus In the last verse, after relating his experience, he gives equestrian advice to a friend, who then picks up some girls, finds a faster horse, and takes off at full speed: :Now the ground is white :Go it while you're young, :Take the girls tonight :And sing this sleighing song; :Just get a bobtailed bay :Two forty as his speed :Hitch him to an open sleigh :And crack! you'll take the lead. :Chorus Original lyrics The 1857 lyrics differed slightly from those we know today. It is unknown who replaced the words with those of the modern version. :Dashing through the snow, :In a one-horse open sleigh, :O'er the hills we go, :Laughing all the way. :Bells on bobtail ring, :Making spirits bright, :Oh what sport to ride and sing :A sleighing song tonight. :Chorus :Jingle bells, jingle bells, :Jingle all the way! :O what joy it is to ride :In a one-horse open sleigh. :A day or two ago :I thought I'd take a ride :And soon Miss Fannie Bright :Was seated by my side :The horse was lean and lank :Misfortune seemed his lot :He got into a drifted bank :And we got upset :Chorus :A day or two ago :The story I must tell :I went out on the snow :And on my back I fell :A gent was riding by :In a one-horse open sleigh :He laughed as there I sprawling lie :But quickly drove away :Chorus :Now the ground is white :Go it while you're young :Take the girls tonight :And sing this sleighing song :Just get a bobtailed bay :Two forty is his speed :Hitch him to an open sleigh :And crack! You'll take the lead. :Chorus Appearances in Christmas specials * Pluto's Christmas Tree (1952) - Mickey Mouse whistles the song while decorating his Christmas tree. * A Charlie Brown Christmas (1965) - Lucy asks Schroeder to play the song on his piano, but in three different variations. * A Special Sesame Street Christmas (1978) * Bugs Bunny's Looney Christmas Tales (1979) - At the beginning of the special's third act, Bugs Bunny is leading his fellow carolers (Pepé Le Pew, Foghorn Leghorn, Yosemite Sam, Elmer Fudd, and Porky Pig) in singing this when his nephew, Clyde, comes in, telling his uncle that he promised to read him a Christmas story. * Christmas Comes to Pac-Land (1982) - The Ghost Monsters make their entrance in this special, singing their own version of the song's chorus. * Yogi Bear's All-Star Comedy Christmas Caper (1982) - At the beginning of this special, Yogi Bear's friends sing a version about how they are driving up to Jellystone Park to visit him and Boo Boo for Christmas. * The New Scooby-Doo Mysteries: "The Nutcracker Scoob" (1984) * The Charlie Brown and Snoopy Show: "The Play" (1985) - In an adaptation of a 1963 storyline from the Peanuts comic strip, Linus is forced to sing this in the school's Christmas pageant. * A Muppet Family Christmas (1987) - Kermit and his nephew, Robin, briefly sing a few lines of the song before being interrupted by the Electric Mayhem's performance of "Jingle Bell Rock". * Disney Sing Along Songs: Very Merry Christmas Songs * Die Hard (1987) * "Christmas in July" * The Simpsons: "Simpsons Roasting on an Open Fire" (1989) - Bart's class sings the song as part of the school's Christmas pageant. Bart, however, sings the "Batman smells" variation of the chorus and is pulled offstage. * Barney and the Backyard Gang: "Waiting for Santa" * 'Tis a Gift * Wee Sing The Best Christmas Ever! * TaleSpin: "Jolly Molly Christmas" (1990) - Louie, as Santa Claus, leads his "elves" in singing this to Molly while Baloo and Kit try to grant her wish for snow. * Batman: The Animated Series: "Christmas With the Joker" (1992) - At the beginning of this Batman: The Animated Series episode, the inmates of Arkham Asylum are singing this. The Joker naturally sings the "Batman smells" variant as he makes his escape. * We Wish You a Merry Christmas * Inspector Gadget Saves Christmas (1992) * Rugrats: "The Santa Experience" (1992) * Full House" "A Very Tanner Christmas" * Disney's Christmas Fantasy on Ice * Disney Sing Along Songs: The Twelve Days of Christmas (1992) * The Nightmare Before Christmas (1993) * Alpha's Magical Christmas (1994) * Jingle All the Way (1996) * Hey Arnold!: "Arnold's Christmas" (1996) * Kenan and Kel: "Merry Christmas, Kenan" (1996) * Wiggly, Wiggly Christmas * "The Christmas Tree" * "The Magic School Bus Holiday Special" * Recess: "Yes, Mikey, Santa Does Shave" - The closing credits feature a version sung by as the singing voice of Mikey Blumberg. It was later animated as the ending scene of Recess Christmas: Miracle on Third Street. * Barney's Night Before Christmas * Mickey's Once Upon a Christmas (1999) * Grandma Got Run Over by a Reindeer (2000) * SpongeBob SquarePants: "Christmas Who?" (2000) - SpongeBob leads the people of Bikini Bottom in chanting "Santa's coming tonight" to the tune of "Jingle Bells". * Jay Jay, the Jet Plane: "Jay Jay's Christmas Adventure" * Yule Be Wiggling * "Digimon World Tour, Part 3" * Prancer Returns (2001) * Elmo's World: Happy Holidays! * Barney's Christmas Star (2002) * Home Alone 4 (2002) * A Very Merry Pooh Year (2002) * It's a Very Merry Muppet Christmas Movie (2002) * It's A Hi-5 Christmas * The Polar Express (2004) - As the pre-launch celebration comes to the close, the instrumental version of the first verse and the first half of the chorus part, arranged by composer/conductor , plays. * The Madagascar Penguins in a Christmas Caper (2005) * "White Lie Christmas" * Merry Christmas, Drake & Josh (2008) * The Dog Who Saved Christmas - The song is played several times. At one point, George and Zeus sing it with some alternate lyrics after George collects Zeus from the pound. * Jingle and Bell's Christmas Star (2012) * Peter Rabbit: "Peter Rabbit's Christmas Tale" (2012) * Lady Gaga & the Muppets' Holiday Spectacular (2013) * "A Very Guppy Christmas!" * "A Reggae Potato Christmas" * Olaf's Frozen Adventure (2017) - On his way back to Arendelle with Sven, Olaf sings the song with most of the lyrics being altered. * ''A Very Pentatonix Christmas'''' (2017) * ''Bigfoot (2018) - While the film has almost entirely have the original music by , the slow, instrumental arranged version of this song is heard over the opening scene. * The Grinch (2018) * Pentatonix: A Not So Silent Night (2018) * Aggretsuko: We Wish You a Metal Christmas (2018) - Covered in punk rock by Tim Timebomb and the Interrupters. Album releases * Christmas with the Chipmunks (1961) * Merry Christmas (1965) * Pebbles & Bamm-Bamm Singing Songs of Christmas (1965) * Christmas with the Brady Bunch (1970) * Exciting Christmas Stories with Scooby-Doo and Friends (1979) * Disney presents A Family Christmas (1980) * Rainbow Brite Christmas (1985) * Hanna-Barbera's Christmas Sing-A-Long (1991) * A Pooh Christmas (1994) * Disney's Christmas Collection (1995) * A Sesame Street Christmas (1995) * Jingle All The Way: Original Motion Picture Soundtrack (1996) * Happy Holidays Love, Barney (1997) * A Flintstones Motown Christmas (1999) - Performed by and . * Merry Christmas: Animaniacs & Looney Tunes (1999) * Santa Claus is Coming (1999) * Arthur's Perfect Christmas (2000) * Hi-5: It's A Hi-5 Christmas (2001) * Christmas with Disney (2006) * Dora's Christmas (2008) * Songs to Celebrate 25 Days of Christmas (2009) * Glee: The Music, the Christmas Album (2010) * A Green and Red Christmas (2011 reissue) * Chipmunks Christmas (2012) * Merry Nickmas (2012) - Performed by . * Annoying Orange Presents: Christmas in the Kitchen (2012) * It's a Pony Kind of Christmas (2015) * ''Christmas Is Here!'' (2018) Category:Songs Category:Disney songs Category:Hanna-Barbera songs Category:Wiggles songs Category:PBS Kids songs Category:Nickelodeon songs Category:Warner Bros. songs